Another Marichat story
by CrystalRose03
Summary: When somehow photos of Marinette with Chat Noir end up on the internet, things get complicated. They look like something they're not in them. Or are they? They don't even know. Just an idea that I had and had to write down. Marichat.
1. Chapter 1

It was just another day for Marinette, well, almost. She was actually early for school today, she was really proud of herself, to be honest. When she walked in past the gates, she expected Alya to run up to her out of seemingly nowhere and make a big deal out of it, no Alya in sight. She brushed off the uncomfortable feeling slowly forming in her stomach. She went straight in to the classroom, realizing she hadn't passed any of her classmates on the way. That feeling was slowly growing, she tried to ignore it.

The small amount of chatter coming from the classroom died away when she walked in, everyone was looking at her. She suddenly felt very nervous. She saw Alya being the only person with her back turned. She walked towards her friend.

"Hey Alya, ummm... What's going on?". The reporter turned to her with cold eyes, something Marinette wasn't used to. That feeling was eating at her now.

"What's going on? I don't know Marinette, you tell me". _What?_

"Um, I'm not really sure what yo-"

"How could you not tell me, Mari?! I thought we were best friends! No secrets! But _this_ , this is huge! Especially for _me_! Not _only_ am I your best friend, I am the most enthusiastic Ladybug blogger out there!" _Oh no, no, no, no, this has something to do with Ladybug!_

"Alya, what are you talking ab-"

"Oh my God. You're even _denying_ it! I don't want any of that, 'it was a one time thing, I don't even know what happened myself, I swear I was going to tell you as soon as I saw you', crap, Okay?". Marinette was so confused, and it must have shown on her face, because Alya gave a disbelieving laugh, threw her hands in the air, tossed her phone to Mari, which she struggled to catch, and stormed out. She got cold stares from a few people across the room. She gaped at where her friend had left and turned on the phone, entering her password, what she was met with made her stomach drop. Photos. Four of them. They were of her and Chat Noir, snuggled under one of her pink blankets, with steaming mugs of hot chocolate in hand, sitting on her roof.

In the first one, she was laughing at something Chat had said, trying not to spill her drink, he had an affectionate smile on his face.

In the second one, she was tapping his nose with a teasing smile on her face as he smirked.

In the third one, it was considerably darker, showing just how long they had been there, and she noticed that there were times in the corners of them all. Her breath hitched as she saw herself resting her head on Chat's shoulder, a small smile on her face, and Chat's head on her own. His eyes were closed and he looked peaceful.

But the forth one made her heart stop. Again, it was darker, night time. The Parisian lights lit up there faces in a -she had to admit- pretty romantic looking setting. She was kissing Chat's cheek, a pink tint to her face, and Chat looked stunned, face covered in a very obvious blush, not hidden by his mask.

It wasn't what it looked like. Did they really look like that? She saw the way he was looking in each, but what surprised her was the way _she_ looked in them. They looked comfortable and at ease. Did they really look like that? It seemed so different when she was there. She looked up from Alya's phone to look at her classmates. They were still giving her those looks. Some looked shocked or surprised, some looked hurt or angry. She didn't know what to do. Then Chloé sauntered up to her.

" _Really_ , Maritrash? I didn't even think _you_ would stoop as low as that mangy ally-cat". She bit back the _He's not a mangy ally-cat_ , knowing she would dig herself deeper.

"I fully understand that first place was unobtainable for you, but _really_. Although, I guess I shouldn't be surprised, it is _you_ , after all". Her grip tightened on the phone, feeling the pricks in her eyes, willing herself to not let Chloé get to her.

"I guess that a mangy ally-cat is the best you can hope for-"

"Stop calling him a mangy ally-cat!", she regret it as soon as the words were out of her mouth. Chloé looked like she had been slapped across the face. No one had ever talked back to her, or interrupted her. Marinette immediately knew that was the wrong thing to do. Not denying, or trying to explain herself, or running after Alya, or even defending _herself_ , no, _instead_ , she defended him. She couldn't bear to look up at anyone. She ran, already feeling the tears rolling down her face. She crashed into someone just outside the door, Alya's phone fell from her hand, forgotten.

"S-sorry", she muttered, trying to hide her tears. She looked up and saw Adrien staring down at her with a confused face on,

"Mari? What's wrong?", she got up and ran, not answering him, she couldn't bear to see his face.

"Marinette?!", she heard from behind her, her tears turned into sobs. Adrien stared after her, not knowing what to do. What the hell happened?! He saw the discarded phone on the floor, and picked it up. When he saw the photos he felt sick. It wasn't like that. They looked like she- it looked like they- this was all his fault.

 **A/N: What do you think? I really should have thought this through, because I have no idea were to go from here. Any suggestions? Please review, I want to know your thoughts.** _ **-Crys**_


	2. Chapter 2

Marinette thought back to the first time Chat Noir had -literally- landed on her roof.

It was late. Well, not exactly. It was still pretty light outside. Marinette was drawing in her sketchpad, thinking through a new design, when a thud above her broke her out of her reverie. Her heartbeat quickened and she stared up at the roof. After a moment she hesitantly opened the trapdoor and peeked her head up. She didn't see anything. Frowning, she climbed out fully and looked around. She looked being the step and jumped. Even though she was expecting something, it still made her jump. She just hoped to God he didn't notice. Chat Noir was clutching his head, eyes pressed together and leaning against the back of the step, he didn't seem to notice her. She hesitated, and then took a step forward.

"...Chat Noir...?", she had to remind herself that to Chat, Marinette didn't know him. His eyes snapped opened and he stared at her, looking like a deer caught in headlights. She stared at him, not sure what to do.

" Uh... Are you... _Okay_ ?", just act like a shy, nervous civilian. He blinked at her and then a smirk came onto his face,

" _Purr_ fectly fine, _Princess_ ", she stopped herself from rolling her eyes. And then his smirk turned into a sheepish smile.

"I, uh, seem to have crashed on your roof. Sorry for the disturbance, Princess... I just, ah, seem to have hit my head", her eyes snapped to where his hand was clutching his head, and knew her expression had turned to one of worry. She kneeled down without thinking and gently pulled his hand away. He stared at her in alarmed shock.

"Uh, Princess?", she ignored him and gently moved his hair out of the way, looking for any damage. ' _She's really close..._ ', was one of the thoughts on his mind. She nervously bit her lip, still focusing on his head. ' _She's actually pretty cute... Adrien! Snap out of it!_ ', he shook all thoughts like that out of his head as she sighed and sat back onto her legs.

"You've cut yourself, you silly cat, and that's going to be one hell off a bruise", he gulped as the words rolled off her tongue, _silly cat?_ She still didn't seem to notice her mistake and bit her lip again. ' _So cute... NO!_ '.

"That'll need stitches... And your obviously not going to want to go to a hospital...", she was muttering to herself, which he found quite endearing. A thought seemed to occur to her,

"Not like a haven't done it before...", she muttered hesitantly, _done what before?!_ She sounded like she was debating something. In the end she sighed.

"Wait here, I'll be right back", and with that she was climbing back down into her room before he could speak, he became nervous, what was she doing?! He brought a hand up to his head, wincing at the touch, he looked alarmed at the blood now on his claws. He heard Marinette coming back. She was holding a glass of water, a cloth, and a needle and thread.

" This is going to hurt, Chat, I'm not going to lie. But don't worry, I sew every day, and I've stitched up myself quite a few times before, your just going to have to trust me". The thing that stood out most in that sentence was the fact that, _she had_ stitched _herself up, a_ few _times before? As in, she had given herself stitches, and she's_ needed _to, more than_ once _before?!_ He didn't realize she had been calling his name.

"Chat? Chat Noir. _Chat?_ ", he looked ujp at her and smirked,

"No problem, Princess!", she frowned.

"Tell me what I just said". His smirk faltered,

"Uh...". She groaned.

" _Chat!_ This is serious! I'm about to put a _needle_ through your skin!". That brought him back to reality. He noticed the wet cloth she holding, and the needle sitting in the glass of water. Oh. _Oh._ She rolled her eyes.

"Don't move, this'll sting". She carefully brought the cloth up to his head and dabbed gently at the cut, he winced.

"Sorry..." She whispered. He forced a grin onto his face.

"Not a problem, Princess". He realized he had missed a perfect pun opportunity and cursed himself, she had obviously noticed. She gave him a worried glance, before turning back to his wound.

Once all the blood was cleaned up, she bit her lip,

"This will _definitely_ sting", she warned, ripping open an antiseptic wipe packet he hadn't noticed before. She nervously dabbed at the cut, and he hissed. She pulled away, wincing,

"I'm sorry", she whispered, he waved her off. After she cleasned it, she picked upon the needle, willing it on the cloth.

"Are you ready?", he gave her a grin.

"I'm a big cat, Princess". She looked him in the eyes.

"You hissed at the _antiseptic_ , Chat", she deadpanned. He glared at her playfully. She sighed, although he swore he saw an amused twinkle in her eye. He felt triumphant.

"Ready?", he nodded, hiding his grimance, she paused, glancing at him, before carefully bringing the needle up to the cut.

"I'm sorry", she whispered again.

"There. All done". He sighed and relaxed against the wall as she wiped the needle clean. She stared at him worriedly.

"Do you drink hot chocolate?", her question caught him off gaurd. He blinked.

"I'll get you some, it'll make you feel better", he chuckled weakly,

"Sure thing, Princess", she smiled and climbed down again. He groaned as soon as she was out of earshot. It had been quick, but his muscled had tensed up the whole time, and now he just wanted a relaxing bath. Marinette came back up with two mugs surprisingly quick. He took one from her as she sat down cross-legged in front of him.

"So, what were you even _doing_?", she asked with a raised eyebrow. He sheepishly smiled,

"Just running about. I had a long day and I needed some fresh air. Guess I was distracted". Sure, she fully understand the freedom of the suit, not that he knew that, but something was off about his tone.

"What happened?", he blinked, caught off gaurd, but then gave her a wide grin

"Just some stuff at home. Nothing _fur_ you to worry your little head about", she ignored the pun.

"Chat? You can talk to me anytime you need to", she didn't really think it through before she made the offer. He looked stunned, before a genuine smile broke out on his face, his eyes softened.

"Thanks, Princess. That means a lot". She found herself smiling back at him.

"Seriously, don't even hesitate. I'm told I'm a good listener, and I'd be glad to offer an ear to one of Paris' famous superhero duo", she added a wink at the end. Both were surprised at the gesture, Chat, because he had never seen this side to his -usually- shy classmate, and Marinette because she didn't expect to get so comfortable around _Chat Noir_ , of all people.

They talked for a while more, about anything that came to mind. Marinette suddenly noticed how dark it had gotten. She spied Chat's empty mug and picked it up.

"It's getting late". He looked around, just noticing how dark it had gotten too.

"Well, I better be off, Princess". She smiled and he was just about to jump away when she called his name. He turned to face her. She didn't notice the slight pink tint to her cheeks.

"Will you come back tomorrow?", he was taken aback by the question.

"I want to check your stitches, make sure you haven't ripped them by then". She added. For some reason he felt... _disappointed?_

"For a moment there, Princess, I almost thought you just enjoyed my company", he teased. She rolled her eyes and fake scoffed,

"As if, I just don't want my precious time and work gone to waste", she teased back.

" _Meow_ ch, Princess. You wound me". She rolled her eyes, although he noticed her small smile.

"I'll be off, then. See you tomorrow, Princess".

"You better be careful", she warned, he winked.

"As always", she scoffed.

"Bye then, Princess", and he jumped away with a two fingered salute. She shook her head at him, but couldn't keep the smile off her face. Somehow the knowledge he would be back tomorrow made her giddy.

 **A/N: That's chapter 2. I think the next chapter or two will be flashbacks, so be warned. It is still a few months before the first chapter. Please review, I want to know your thoughts.** _ **-Crys**_


	3. Chapter 3

_Still in flashback_

She tried to ignore her thumping heart. Tried to stop herself from listening out for every little sound. Tried to not glance at the clock on her dresser every minute. Tikki asked her what was wrong. She shrugged, shook her head, or gave a vague, passive answer. Tikki had fallen asleep the day before. She had no clue what had happened or how long Marinette had been on the roof. When she asked, Marinette told her, she just made it sound... Briefer. And she didn't mention the fact he was coming back. That was because it was a minute detail, and might not even happen. Besides, it's just to check on the stitches. And he might not even come. She found herself biting her lip at that thought, _what if he didn't come?_ Then no problem. Somehow telling herself this didn't make the doubt stop eating away at her.

She sighed and leaned back in her chair, balancing on one chair leg. Then there was a sharp tapping. She jumped and lost balance, dangling in mid air for a second before the chair teetered backwards and hit her carpet. She grumbled and went up to open the hatch, climbing out. Chat Noir was there with a grin on his face.

"Hey there, Princess! You alright? I heard a crash", she looked away.

"I knocked over the chair..." his grin grew wider

"Only because you startled me you dumb cat! I wasn't exactly expecting a tapping sound to interrupte my studying" she snapped, his eyes flashed in confusion for a second,

"What are you studying?!", he sounded confused. She flushed a tiny bit.

"Oh, just this and that. It was more like general revision", he still looked confused, and she looked for a change in discussion.

"Your head!", she blurted, and then tried to cover it up.

"I mean, I should have a look at your head, that's why your here, after all. There's no other reason, right? Of course not, uh.. How is it feeling?" She rambled rapidly, trying to stop the flow of words. He just smiled at her.

"It's _feline_ just _purr_ fect, Princess". She rolled her eyes at his puns, before kneeling down and indicating she was about to have a look. He bowed his head slightly, and she carefully moved his hair out of the way of where she remembered the cut. They weren't ripped anyway, still in tact, and it looked fine. She nodded and smiled.

"Looks good. But that doesn't mean you can start being a show-off again, you still have to be careful".

" _Show off_ ?! You wound me, _Purr_ incess". She chuckled and ruffled the hair on the good side of his head. Then she stood back up.

"Hot chocolate?", he nodded eagerly and she laughed.

"You're just like an excited kitten!". He winked.

"I'll be right back", she called, already climbing down.

And that's how it became routine. Chat would show up, she would check his stitches, then she would make two mugs of hot chocolate and they would stay up til all hours chatting. Tikki teased her of course, and Marinette protested that they were just talking.

After a while, his cut was healed. She found herself sad over the fact he wouldn't be visiting her anymore, she shook those thoughts away and told herself this was a good thing.

She was halfheartedly drawing when the familiar tapping came. She pushed down the fluttering in her stomach and climbed up.

"What are you doing here Chat, I told you your cut was fully healed". His grin didn't falter.

"I just wanted to stop by, Princess", she crossed her arms,

"And why's that?" _What are you doing?! Just be happy he's here!_

She noticed she tiny blush on his cheeks and her eyes widened.

"I, uh, just wanted to, well, talk to you. I, uh" he nervously rubbed the back of his neck

"I, kinda missed, just, talking..." He trailed off and grinned sheepishly. She stared down at him with wide eyes, and then a soft smile pushed itself onto her features.

"I'll grab some hot chocolate".

No matter if there was an akuma attack, or a tiring patrol, or if it was past midnight. Chat always came and knocked on her door. She would make hot chocolate and they would talk. And Marinette found herself looking forward to her time with Chat more and more.

At school, Alya commented excitedly that she was getting better around Adrien, and she was. She had stopped stuttering, and could hold a conversation with him. Alya was proud and excited, but Marinette found she didn't feel as enthusiastic as before, for some reason. She told herself it was because she was getting more comfortable with him, and that it was a good thing. But deep down, that sounded like a lie.

"Hey Chat?"

"Yes, Princess?"

"What are your family like?", he froze. He just blinked at her blankly.

"My... Family?"

"Yeah, you know, as a civilian". She felt a bit guilty asking, since she wouldn't tell him about her civilian life. When she was Ladybug, anyway. But she was curious.

He smiled sadly.

"Ah. Well, uh. We're not... We don't.. It's, uh...", he frowned, clearly struggling for words.

"It's... Complicated. I guess, I guess we're not the, ah, _best_ family". She frowned sat him, regretting asking.

"What do you mean?", he just waved her off and grinned, although she noticed it was forced.

"I wouldn't want to bore you", he did dismissively. Her brows furrowed.

"Chat." He looked at her expression and sighed.

"Do you really want to know?"

"I meant it when I said you could talk to me if you needed". He smiled and looked at his hands.

"Well, my Mom... Isn't around. I don't have any brothers or sisters, and that just leaves me and my Dad... He, um, he hasn't really been the same since she left... And he's not really much of a Dad...". She could see he was getting upset, but it looked like talking was helping. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"He doesn't want to know me. Sometimes I wonder what's wrong with me, sometimes I think it's because I remind him of her... I don't know. But all he has is expectations. I do everything he's ever asked, but it never seems to be enough. I've never contradicted him, or disobeyed him, or even talked back to him. Yet he treats me like just another one of his employees. I go with everything he says, do as I'm told, obey the rules, buts it's just not enough for him", his tone was bitter now.

"I could get everything 100% perfect, 100% of the time, but the second I even twitch out of place, he acts like I do nothing right. He acts like I'm the disappointment that just can't live up to his image.", there were tears in his eyes and his voice was strained.

"I just... I do as much as I can. I put way more than all of my effort into everything, but it's never enough. It's not fair. I just..." She wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tight. She felt her shoulder getting damp, but she didn't care.

"I just wish I was good enough... I just wish he was pround of me..." He whispered into her hair. She tightened her hold on him, and let him cry. It was the most horrible thing she had ever heard. Adrien's dad was tough, but this... This was something she couldn't handle. She realized she was crying too.

"That's so awful... I'm so, so sorry", she barely whispered it, but she knew he heard her. Even after he stopped crying and wiped his eyes, apologizing, she didn't let go. And they stayed like that.

She felt something tap her shoulder. She kept her eyes closed. It was warm out, and she was tired. She was also really comfortable. Her shoulder was tapped again. She made a half-bothered humming sound. She was tapped again. She sighed. And she was tapped again.

"What?" she groaned. Another tap.

"Chat, what do you want?", there was a pause, and then,

"I'm bored". She groaned and turned over, burrying her face in her arms.

"Then find something to do".

"But I'm bored"

"And I'm tired", snhe replied. He poked her.

"Priiinceeeeess"

"Find something to do, Chat!". He poked her again. Before he could react she grabbed his arm. He yelped. She clung to his arm and curled herself around it like it was a teddy bear.

"Mariiiiiiiiii", she shook her head, not letting go of his arm. He sighed, and they stayed like that. He was glad her eyes were closed, so she couldn't see the the triumphant, Cheshire grin covering his face.

 **A/N: More memories, still flashbacks. If you have any ideas for a little scene, tell me. I should probably go aback to the story soon, but I'm really enjoying writing these. Please review, I want to know your thoughts.** _ **-Crys**_


	4. Chapter 4

_Again, still flashbacks_

They were sitting down and talking. Marinette was absentmindedly fiddling with her keychain that she was holding.

After a minute, she realized Chat wasn't listening to her. It didn't really bother her much, to be honest, but she noticed him staring intently at the ground near her feet. She looked to where he was staring, she didn't see anything. Then his eyes moved razor sharp to s different place.

She looked at him, trying to figure out what was going on. As she was trying to figure it out, she played with the keys in her hand. His gaze darted all over the place before stopping on a random place again. She was seriously confused. When she flicked her finger, she noticed his eyes move.

She stared sat her hand in bewilderment. Just to try, she shook here hand up and down. His eyes followed the pattern, but were still looking down at the ground. She followed his gaze again and this time she saw it.

A tiny red dot. She glanced up to her hand and remembered she had a tiny laser on this keychain. She tried to find it and noticed his eyes darting around again. He stared at him, utterly confused. And then it hit her, and she burst out laughing. This broke him out of his reverie. He blinked at her. She gasped for breath.

"Oh my God... Oh my God. Chat, are you staring at the _laser_?" He looked at her confused, and then she flicked her hand. His head whipped down to the ground again. She found the laser and grabbed it, pointing it in a circle. His eyes followed the circular movement.

"Chat? Kitty, you're chasing a _laser_ ". He didn't acknowledge her, still focused on the little red dot. She moved it in a figure of eight motion, which he followed.

"Chat? Are you a show-off?", she moved the laser up and down, making him nod. She laughed again.

"Do you eat ice cream", he followed the laser, shaking his head. She got an idea and took out her phone, videoing just him.

"Chat? Do you swear that you will tend to my every need, and be my personal slave, for all eternity?". He paused, and then nodded slowly.

"Will you live off of nothing but... Milk for an entire day?", he nodded without hesitation. She tried not to laugh.

"Are you human?", he shook his head.

"Are you a cat?", an enthusiastic nod. She stopped and put her phone away. Deciding she'd had enough fun, that video would re-surface at a later stage. She smirked, and then started talking as if she never stopped, and turned off the laser. He looked up to her, and then a sheepish look came onto his face, realizing he had zoned out on the conversation, and payed attention to her again.

She had to try really, _really_ hard not to laugh.

It was just after another akuma attack, and Marinette has raced home to beat Chat there, she was actually surprised that that had been going well for so long.

"Hey, Princess"

"Mmh?"

"You know the way I've never actually been inside your house?", she gave him a weird look and tilted her head to one side.

"Well... It's going to rain in about forty seconds, so..", the blinked and looked up at the sky, she looked back to him and shrugged. Gathering all of the books she had been working on/reading, she started to climb down, when her head was almost out of view, she looked at him.

"Are you coming or not?", for some reason his heart rate sped up and his stomach fluttered. He pushed it away and followed her in, closing the hatch behind him just as the first drop fell.

Marinette dropped everything on the carpet and kneeled down to sort it out. Chat stayed standing where he was, awkwardly looking around the room, not sure what he was supposed to do. She paused and glanced at him and then raised an eyebrow. Her expression cleared when she realized that he was slightly uncomfortable and a smile found it's way onto her face.

"You can sit down on the chaise, Chat". He looked hesitantly at the chaise before sitting on the edge of it. She laughed.

"Get comfortable, kitty, I don't have a problem with you being here". He relaxed the tiniest bit, but still looked on edge. Sighing, she pushed the books away from her and lay on the carpet, staring at him.

"Chat, seriously. You can take up the entire chaise. You can sit in the chair, or on the carpet, or beside the window, wherever you want -so long as you don't break anything- I really am fine with you being in here". He looked at her, then hesitantly sat back about an inch. She shook her head and got up, walked over, and threw herself beside him on the chaise, making him jump.

"P-Princess?". She smirked.

"If you're not going to be comfortable, then I have to be doubly comfortable ", she leaned back, lying on his arm. His eyes widened while looking at her.

She grinned and spread out more, knowing he was still uncomfortable, well, it was pretty adorable... In a 'sad kitten', sort of way, of course. This wasn't working. She sat back down on the carpet, and noticed with a little smile that he was taking up more space now, sitting casually.

She decided she'd have to try again next time it was cold. Or raining.

"Have you ever sewn?" She asked, noticing how he had been following the stitching her hand had been doing. He shrugged.

"Not personally, but I see it a lot. I mostly see things being taken in, and adjusted slightly", she nodded, intrigued.

"My, ah, Dad's job, is... To do with sewing", he was trying not to give away too much, and she got that.

"That's cool. I like sewing. Because you don't have to _find_ something to wear, you can just _make_ whatever you want". She had a mischievous look in her eye,

"You know, Chat, I could make something for you...", he laughed and waved her off.

"Sure, sure, Princess. Whatever you want. It better be a black hoodie though", he joked, she laughed at him.

He really should have expected it. He didn't, not in the slightest, but he probably should have. When he arrived, Marinette had seemed a little more giddy than usual.

"Close your eyes, kitty", he did, confused.

"Princess?", he got no reply.

"Hold out your hands", he did and felt something soft being pushed into them, he was curious.

"Okay, Chat. You can look now", he glanced down and saw something black folded into his hands, intrigued, he held it out. And blinked at it.

It was a black hoodie. He looked at her, and she smiled. Looking back at the hoodie, he examined it. It looked about the right size, thick and warm, soft, with a nice black material. Turning it around, he saw the back had 'Cataclysm!' Written on it in a green font. The hood even had little green pockets for his cat ears. He looked to her again. She giggled.

"Well? Try it on", he grinned and slipped it over his head, marvelling at the felling of the material. It fit perfectly. He smiled at her gratefully.

"Thanks, Princess. But my birthday isn't for another five months". She giggled again and shook her head.

"It's not a birthday present, silly. Think of it as... A token of appreciation, for saving Paris", she hid her smile, being the only one to understand how ironic her excuse had been. He looked at her, stunned. No one had gone to such lengths for him, especially for no reason. He hugged her tightly, surprising her.

"Thank you, Princess. I mean it. Thank you so much, I love it!", her surprised look faded to one of soft sadness.

"No problem, kitty. And it was a win-win situation, because I really enjoyed making it", he pulled away and she smiled sweetly, which turned into a teasing smirk.

"Plus I'm sure many aspiring-fashion designers would die for the chance for _the_ Chat Noir to wear one of their designs", he laughed and sat down. After a minute,

"Chat...? Can I have a hug?... You're really soft, now...", he laughed again and she smiled, granted with a _tiny_ blush. He hugged her anyway. She sighed against him.

"So soft...", she muttered, he smirked and laughed again.

Marinette had started noticing changes in Chat's behavior as Ladybug. He still made puns, of course, but she noticed little things.

Like how he had been using 'LB', or 'Ladybug' one or two mores time than needed instead of 'My Lady'.

Or how his flirting had died down. She had gotten so used to it that in the middle of an Akuma fight, when she said something, giving him one of the most perfect openings to flirt with her, she found herself automatically face-palming before realizing he hadn't said anything. He had missed it.

She had barely noticed him staring at her during patrol, which she didn't think of as a bad thing, but it was a little strange.

And he hadn't confessed his love for her, or asked her out, or hinted at revealing their identities over the last month. At _all_. Again, not an unwelcome change, but a confusing one. She had asked him if anything was wrong. He shook his head,

"Don't worry about it", he answered with a small smile. When she had asked again later as Marinette, he had given her a huge Cheshire grin,

"Of course not, Princess", she turned around to think about it, and missed the small, affectionate smile on his face as he watched her with his eyes softening.

It was dark. The lights lit up the terrace and they sat talking, oblivious to the time. Marinette giggled and stood up, walking along in a funny pattern. Chat watched her fondly.

"What are you doing, Princess?", he called out to her. She giggled.

"Dancing!", she replied, mid-spin. He chuckled and watched her. She held out her hand.

"Come on, kitty. Dance with me!" He laughed and shook his head. She pouted, adorably.

"I don't know how", he said with a shrug. She laughed again, the tinkling sound filling the silent air around them.

"You don't need to know how! You just do what you feel like!". He watched her as she randomly moved about, doing what she wanted, moving how she pleased. He sighed and stood up.

"Tell me what to do, Princess, I don't even know where to start!". She ran over to him, and grabbed both his hands. Her eyes sparkled, and her face was lit up by the lights of the city below them.

"Close your eyes" she instructed, he did as he was told.

"Listen to my voice"

"Listen to your heart, and just... Move. Spin and jump and twirl and step and do whatever you feel like". He didn't really understand, but he tried. He imagined one of the songs he played on the piano.

He listened to the song and concentrated on it. He took a step back, still holding Marinette's hands and bringing her with him. He took another step, to the side. Mari followed. He took for steps, getting faster, until there were dancing. He twirled her and she laughed. He didn't realize he had started humming the tune.

He stepped away from her, and then back in. And out. And in. Marinette was improvising with him, listening to the tune. He took a double step to the side, speeding up. He spun away from her, and bowed, tilting his imaginary hat. She giggled and curtsied. He walked back to meet her and they joined hands again, Chat leading her around in random patterns, still humming. She licked her ujp and spun her around, putting her back down, she laughed, a light, free sound. She broke away and did a double turn, arms up. She spun around, doing her own little steps, in a tight circle. She turned to him, cheeks slightly flushed, as if it was his turn. Then he laughed, noticing it sound similar to Mari's. Light and free.

They continued their strange little dance, until he got to the end of the song. She clapped for him, and he mock bowed. She sat down on the edge, legs swinging loosely. He sat down next to her.

"Hey Chat?"

"Yeah?"

"You danced."

"Yeah, Princess, I did"

"Without any lessons", she nudged him,

"See? Told you, it's easy", she grinned. He smiled genuinely.

"Yeah, Princess, you did".

 **A/N: Okay, more flashbacks, I'm finishing up on the flashbacks now, more or less. Please review, I want to know your thoughts.** _ **-Crys**_


	5. Chapter 5

Her phone started buzzing. She dug the heels of her hands into her eyes for a second before unlocking it. It was messages from an unknown number. She frowned and opened it. Four images appeared on the screen. She groaned. They were screenshots, she wasn't sure what site it was. But something had been underlined, she zoomed in and saw **3.7m views** underlined in red. That was insane! It hadn't even been 24 hours! They were followed by screenshots of some of the comments.

 **Who's that?!**

 **...**

 **Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She's friends with the girl who runs the Ladyblog.**

 **...**

 **What am I seeing?!**

 **...**

 **UMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM...**

 **...**

 **OH MY GOD!**

 **...**

 **Aww, this is so cute!**

 **...**

 **What the hell am I looking at.**

 **...**

 **Is this photo shopped?**

 **...**

 **Nope. It's legit.**

 **...**

 **WHO WHAT WHEN WHERE WHY HOW?!**

 **...**

 **Marinette... Chat Noir... *gasp*, Marichat!**

 **...**

 **Did you just make them a ship name?!**

 **...**

 **Marichat! 3**

 **...**

 **So cute!**

 **...**

 **Where the hell is Ladybug?!**

 **...**

 **Holy shit...**

 **...**

 **No. That's definitely not photoshopped...**

 **...**

 **DUDE!**

 **...**

 **Who the hell is she.**

The bluenette turned off the phone. She just wanted them to go away! Why couldn't they just leave her alone?! She didn't _ask_ for this! She didn't _want_ this! And how did whoever this was even get her number?! She groaned as she thought of when those stupid photos were taken. She had been in such a good mood, then. In all of them.

 **(A/N: you might want to go back and read the descriptions of the photos before reading this)**

She had been cold. So when she went down to get the hot chocolate, she brought one of her fluffy pink blankets up with her. It wasn't unusual given the recent weather.

They were sitting down under the blanket and he had just fit _four_ puns into one sentence.

"Chat!", she groaned.

"Enough with the puns!"

"Oh, but Princess, I see you're trying _sew_ hard not to s _meow_ ile". She tensed her muscles around her moth more and rolled her eyes,

"In your dreams, Kitty". He wiggled his eyebrows.

"Are _mew_ sure, _Purr_ incess? Ab _sew_ lutely _paws_ itive? _Fur_ _mew seam_ to be trying _fur_ ry hard not to laugh". She couldn't help it. His expression! She burst out laughing. A triumphant smirk lit up his features. She couldn't stop, letting it all out.

"You're awful!"

"Don't you mean _paw_ ful?", she walked into that one.

"You realize I'm only laughing because it's you, kitty, right?", she was too busy focusing on not spilling her hot chocolate while also trying to breathe to pay attention to the small,

"I know", that came from beside her.

"Oh come on, Princess! Let the Chat out of the bag!". She giggled and shook her head.

"Please! _Purr_ etty _paw_ lease!". She laughed again.

"No, Chat! It's a secret!"

"But _why_?"

" _Because_ ! But I promise you'll be the first to see when I'm done!"

"So long as you model it for me", he said with a cheeky grin.

"No way!"

"That's the deal, Princess, either you tell me what you're designing, or I get to see you model it when you're done!", he didn't really notice the pink dust across her face,

"But..."

"Oh come on, for your favourite kitty?" She turned to him,

"Who said you're my favourite kitty?", she was teasing, he smirked.

"Stop avoiding answering, and we'll talk about that later. Now come on, Princess, tell me now, or model later?". She sighed.

"Fine. I'll model it"

"As soon as you're done".

"Yes, kitty, as soon as I'm done". He nodded and she took a sip of her third refill of hot chocolate. He counted to ten before speaking again.

"Can I get a hint?", she laughed. He smirked at her.

"You are the nosiest cat ever!", she said, poking his nose. He was still smirking.

It was getting darker and the wind had picked up. A strong gust blew and she shivered, furrowing deeper into the blanket, and Chat. He frowned down at her.

"Are you cold, Princess?", she made a humming sound, not really an agreement or a disagreement.

"You'll be warmer inside. I should go". He made to stand up, but she shook her head.

"No. Stay. You're warm and I'm enjoying myself". He raised he eyebrows.

"I'm _warm_?".

"Mm-hm", she hummed as way of agreement. He smiled down at her fondly and relaxed again.

"Okay, Princess, I'll stay". She smiled, and curled up under the blankets more. She started to sing. Quietly at first, and then she got louder. He didn't know the song, but it was beautiful.

"I didn't know you could sing, Princess"

"I can't" she muttered. He frowned.

"Then what was that?". She sighed.

"I have the physical capability to sing, but I'm not _good_ at singing. There's a difference". He frowned again.

"I think you can", she let out a cross between a scoff and a chuckle.

"Sure, kitty"

"No, really. Please continue, I was really enjoying it". She scoffed again. But after a moment, she resumed singing, he hid a little triumphant smile. She closed her eyes and leaned her head onto his shoulder, still singing. He froze up at the contact, but then relaxed. He rested his head on top of hers and she continued singing. Somewhere along, his eyes closed, and he felt relaxed. She finished the song on a long, sweet note. They stayed in that position though, both completely comfortable.

The lights from the city below gently illuminated their vision, making them forget that it was night time. Marinette was explaining one of her designs, Chat nodding, picturing it in his mind.

She picked up her sketchbook and flipped to a different page, bktoing her lip as she analyzed the design. The bluenette sighed and ran her fingers throughher hair. Noticing Chat's inquisitive gaze, she gave him an apologetic smile.

"Sorry. I've just been stuck on this. Designer's Block. I just... Something's not right about it, and I just can't figure it...", she tilted the book, looking at it from different angles, and sighed again.

"I can't get it off my mind. It's been bugging me for days, I can't even _sleep_ ", he chuckled fondly at her.

"May I have a look, Princess?", she held out the book with a shrug. He took it and started looking over it. It was pretty good, a nice, simple design, patterns and colour scheme all good. But he could see where she was coming from, something about it just seemed... Incomplete. He looked over the little details, trying to think of something.

"You should try making the skirt flatter and a bit longer, oh, and try rolling up the jacket sleeves...", she raised an eyebrow at him and took the book back, looking over it, she gave a little nod,

"It could work...", she picked up a rubber and began erasing the outline. Chat leaning over her shoulder, and indicated with his finger what he was imagining. Neither of them really took note of how close they were, she could feel his breath on her skin when he spoke.

Together, they made tiny little changes, slowly changing the image of the design, while keeping the base idea. She just finished sketching a new neckline and held it out, she tilted her head, inspecting it. Chat had leaned back, watching her. A huge grin broke out over her face, her eyes sparkling.

"It's perfect! Thanks, kitty! I mean it, thank you so much!". His stomach fluttered at the adorable look on her face. _Because her excitement is like a child's, absolutely, no other reason. At all._

"You know, Princess. It is tradition for a Princess to reward her knight in shining leather ", he gave her a teasing wink and she giggled.

"Oh? Like what?", he smirked.

"Why, a kiss, of course, Princess", he mock-bowed and the designer laughed again. He grinned at her and sat back down.

"Alright", he hadn't comprehended the word yet, when he felt something warm on his cheek. His face went bright red when he realized she was kissing his cheek. It lasted possibly a second longer than it needed to, before she pulled away, a light blush on her face.

"I, uh, I-I, you-I mean, ah, th-the, I-", the bluenette looked away, with a tiny smile on her face.

"You did say it was tradition", he stared at her in amazement for a moment before smirking,

"That I did, Princess, that I did". She giggled and rolled her eyes.

 **A/N: So there you have it, the stories behind all the photos. To a degree. Just cute and fluffy. The next chapter will be back to present time, continuing with the story. Please review, I want to know your thoughts.** _ **-Crys**_


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